Get Busy, Child
by Jules9
Summary: *INCOMPLETE* Is there still hope for Rafe and Alison? And what does a certain song mean for Rafe?
1. Chapter 1

Alison Barrington scurried about the bathroom, frantically putting the finishing touches on her makeup.  
  
The past few months had been pure torture for her: a mistaken charge for a murder that she didn't commit and  
the return of Rafe, the love of her life, who didn't even remember her. In fact, this new Rafe had gone and done  
something Alison knew her Rafe would never do: marry Livvie, her former best friend, and conceive a child with  
her!  
  
Luckily, Alison's best friend, Jack Ramsey, and his roommate, Jamal Woods, had been kind enough to let her  
stay with them for a few months, while she worked on rebuilding her shattered life. And that was exactly what  
Alison planned to do, starting tonight.  
  
'Forget the police, the lawyers, the judge,' she thought bitterly, 'and forget Rafe. From now on, I'm only going to  
worry about myself.'  
  
***  
  
In a seedy motel room across town, Rafe Kovich quietly packed up the last of his belongings, stuffing them into  
his unwieldy, brown, suede backpack.  
  
He really didn't own much, he realized, only enough to fill one bag. That's all he'd ever really had, enough to get  
by each day.  
  
Rafe was tired, weary. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life this way. He was still young; there was still  
hope, he prayed. There had to be.  
  
Lifting the bag onto his shoulder, Rafe knew it was time to take care of that last detail, the one that pained him  
the most. Silently, he slid the simple, gold band off his left ring-finger, dropping it onto the wooden nightstand  
beside him.  
  
Standing, Rafe declared triumphantly, "Goodbye, past!"  
  
He paused a moment before continuing.  
  
"Hello... future?" 


	2. Chapter 2

"Go, go, go!" Jack chanted, leaning forward in his seat to stare at the television in front of him.  
  
"Yo, man, run!" his best friend, Jamal, yelled beside him.  
  
"God, these games make me so nervous," said Jack, gulping down a swig of his beer.  
  
Jamal said nothing. He simply chuckled at the rapt attention his friend paid the baseball game.  
  
Suddenly... 'Ding, dong,' sounded the doorbell.  
  
"Oh, come on," Jack whined, leaning back against the sofa despondently. "Not now!"  
  
"Man, calm down," said Jamal, rolling his eyes at the other man's laziness. "Stay there. I'll get it."  
  
"Thanks, Jamal," piped Jack cheerily, propping his feet up on the coffee table in front of him and leaning back  
farther in his seat, his eyes never leaving the TV.  
  
'Ding, dong!'  
  
Sighing, Jamal slowly picked himself up and headed for the front door.  
  
'Ding, dong,' the doorbell rang again. Their visitor was getting impatient.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I'm comin'," Jamal muttered, his long legs striding toward the door.  
  
When he finally reached it, the young man swung the door open and was startled by the face that greeted him.  
  
"Rafe."  
  
"I need to see Alison," the visitor insisted, pushing his way into the house... 


	3. Chapter 3

"Well, Rafe, come on in," commented Jamal, watching in amazement as the young slayer boldly strode through  
the foyer and into the living room.  
  
"Hey, Jack, we've got a visitor!" announced Jamal, smirking.  
  
Jack's head spun around to face his best friend.  
  
"Who? Wha-? Whoa," he murmured, spotting their guest.  
  
"Rafe, what are you doing here?" asked Jack incredulously. "I mean, shouldn't you be at home with your wife?"  
  
Rafe chose not to reply to the question. He simply raised his naked left hand. He knew they would come to the  
right conclusion on their own.  
  
"Livvie's staying with her mother. Now, I really need to speak with Alison-"  
  
"Wait, isn't Rachel in Fern-" Jack began.  
  
The cold look in the slayer's hazel eyes answered his question for him.  
  
"Wow." Jack couldn't manage any other word except "wow."  
  
"Yeah, you can say that again," agreed Jamal, sitting down on the couch beside his buddy.  
  
"Great," replied Rafe sarcastically.  
  
"Now," he said, abruptly changing topics. "Alison. Could somebody please tell me where she is? I really need to  
talk to her."  
  
"Wow," Jack repeated.  
  
Rafe rolled his eyes and turned to the other man in the room.  
  
"Jamal?"  
  
"Ah, man, given the circumstances," stated Jamal, "I really wish Ali was here, but..." He winced. "...she's not." 


End file.
